How to Perform Land Title Searches in South Australia

As a property stakeholder, undertaking a Title Search (aka Register Search Statement) for a property in South Australia is a resourceful way to acquire essential, valuable insights for specific properties in that state.

This information can include current property ownership, planning applications, interests, restrictions on the land, associated instruments and more. Having access to these property details can help you to reduce risk by giving you an understanding of potential land use restrictions, easements, debts and land value detractors, allowing you to make informed decisions before purchase or sale.

Landchecker has partnered with Land Services South Australia to provide land and title searches for property owners and professionals.

What is a Land Title Search?

A land title search is a process that gives you a copy of a certificate of title, which provides details about current property ownership, lot and plan information, encumbrances, legal and planning restrictions, associated instruments and more.

If you’re a buyer, developer or investor, title searches are essential to confirm that the seller is the current legal owner and has the right to sell the property.

Conducting a title search is also necessary to understand what kind of restrictions may pertain to the land and if any existing liens on the property need to be paid off at closing. Stakeholders also use the certificate of title to secure property information and data for future planning permits.

Importance of Land Title Searches in South Australia

Here are four reasons why a land title search in South Australia is a vital step in real estate transactions:

1. Verifying ownership before purchasing property

Conducting a land title search in South Australia helps verify that the seller is the rightful owner of the property and has the authority to transfer ownership to potential buyers. Without a title, the buyer risks financial loss due to fraudulent transactions or ownership claims from third parties.

2. Identifying encumbrances that could affect property use

Encumbrances are legal restrictions or claims lodged on a title, including easements, mortgages, liens, leases and more. Potential buyers need access to a title to identify if there are encumbrances attached to the property that could restrict the use of the property.

Suppose someone buys land to build a house and later finds that a utility company holds an easement that prohibits building on most of the property. Without a title search, the buyer would be confronted with unforeseen restrictions at great expense, such as redesigns or an inability to use the land as intended.

3. Ensuring compliance with zoning and development regulations

Every part of South Australia is zoned to guide the types of development that are and aren't appropriate. These zoning laws dictate what can be built on a parcel of land and what the land can be used for. A title search, as well as zoning checks, helps buyers determine that the land is suitable for their intended use.

A property developer may purchase land for commercial development, discovering later that the land is set aside for residential use, leading to costly rezoning applications or abandoning the scheme.

4. Preventing legal disputes

Title searches prevent legal disputes by revealing possible claims or disputes against a property. Overdue claims, faulty boundary reports, or unreported inheritances may cause ownership issues.

For instance, a family buys a house, then is sued by someone else for rights of inheritance, leading to expensive lawsuits and the risk of losing ownership. But this can be avoided by conducting a land title search before proceeding with the sale.

How to Conduct a Land Title Search in South Australia

There are a variety of ways to conduct a land title search and secure the copy of title for your specific property.

1. Accessing the South Australian Integrated Land Information System (SAILIS)

SAILIS is an online website created by the SA government that provides access to updated land and property information, which includes:

Integrated textual and spatial information for an individual property

Certificates of Title

Survey Plans

Registered Dealings

Property Interest Reports

Valuation and Titling information

Historical Searches

SAILIS can be accessed as a guest or industry professional. Guest users can view a range of information products by searching using a property address, title reference, plan/parcel reference or valuation number.

Industry professionals with a SAILIS account can access a broader range of products and search options by logging in to SAILIS with their user ID and password.

2. Using Landchecker as an alternative provider

Landchecker has partnered with Land Services South Australia to bring property owners and professionals competitively priced SA documents, including the following:

SA Title (Register Search Plus)

SA Title (Register Search)

Valuation Details

SA Dealing Details

SA Dealing Image

SA Plan Image

Title and Valuation Details Package

Historical Search

Check Search

Title Details

Landchecker is an all-in-one source of property data and information. Its on-map functionality helps you conduct property research quickly and easily, visualising data sets such as zones, overlays, floods, and bushfires in context to your property or area.

Further, you can seamlessly access key features, including property reports, permit/DA information, land size, and property dimensions, through the Landchecker experience.

3. Engaging a conveyancer or solicitor for assistance

Conveyancers and solicitors help clients make the buying and selling process easier and faster by preparing and reviewing the contract of sale, ensuring compliance with property laws, and facilitating communication between all parties involved.

What Information is Contained in a Land Title?

Register Search Statements for South Australian properties are highly detailed and extensive. The information you will receive from this search includes:

Land Description

A unique description for the property in question that encompasses the full plan/allotment.

Type of Ownership

The title search report will indicate the ownership type (i.e., community, strata, property/land, etc.). This is important since land and property can be owned in various ways and by a sole individual/entity of multiple “joint” ownership, and so on.

Registered Proprietor

The official recorded person/people or organisation who hold ownership of the particular land/property.

Easements

Because easements affect the use of the land in question, it’s important to know about them in advance. Potential easements may be limitations/restrictions regarding the placement and/or building of certain new structures such as water pipes, sheds, etc.

Dealings

Title register instruments that refer to a transaction affecting the land.

Notations

Notations include easements, mortgages, caveats and other relevant records that provide additional information or constraints about the property beyond the basic ownership details.

Parcel Diagram

Some titles don’t include a parcel diagram. In these instances, you can buy a copy of the plan separately.

Who Needs a Land Title Search?

The following individuals rely on land title searches to inform them in making informed property decisions:

1. Property buyers and investors

Buyers and firms acquiring property need to check ownership and ensure there are no legal prohibitions before making a purchase.

Title search guarantees the owner is the seller and there are no secret encumbrances, i.e., mortgages or caveats, on the property. Buyers, without this information, are at risk of buying a property with secret legal or financial encumbrances.

2. Developers and builders

Before the initiation of a building project, developers and builders must establish land ownership, zoning, and any limitations that would impact development.

A title search assists in ascertaining easements, heritage listing, or planning controls that might impact building. Without them, developers might be subjected to expensive delays or litigation.

3. Real estate agents

Real estate agents conduct land title searches in an attempt to provide buyers and sellers with accurate information regarding properties.

By verifying ownership details and registered interests, agents can make sales proceed smoothly and avoid disputes. Failure to verify title facts can lead to legal issues or lost sales.

4. Legal professionals (e.g., conveyancers and solicitors)

Conveyancers and solicitors use land title searches to protect their clients during property transactions.

The experts review title documents to ascertain legal ownership, spot potential traps, and verify compliance with property law. Their expertise leads buyers, sellers, and investors through complex legal requirements with confidence.

Common Issues Identified in Land Title Searches

The following are some of the most common issues that may occur following a land title search in South Australia. We will also discuss what these issues could imply and what can be done to rectify them.

1. Encumbrances restricting property development

The Real Property Act 1886 (SA) deals with land transactions and mandates encumbrances to be registered on land titles. For instance, a property in Adelaide's eastern suburbs is purchased by a developer to construct high-rise apartments.

However, the title search reveals a restriction that permits only single-story houses. Since there is no legal amendment, the project cannot be executed, resulting in the loss of time and money.

Buyers are required to check the title before buying. If there is a problem, recourse through the law is to apply to the Supreme Court of South Australia to change or remove it under the Law of Property Act 1936 (SA). Its success depends on its effect on the surrounding land and whether all the beneficiaries agree to change it.

2. Unresolved mortgages or liens

According to South Australian law, the property cannot be transferred to a new owner until unresolved mortgages or liens have been paid.

This is why prior to the execution of a contract, prospective buyers must obtain a Register Search Statement, which explains any mortgage or financial encumbrance on the title.

Buyers must also obtain a Section 7 Statement (Vendor's Statement), which the Land and Business (Sale and Conveyancing) Act 1994 (SA) mandates to reveal any liabilities.

3. Boundary disputes

Boundary disputes may arise from changes in the landscape or errors in previous land surveys resulting in the physical boundaries of the property and those found in the title being different.

To resolve this type of dispute, you can hire a licensed surveyor to survey the property and accurately determine the property lines. If this method fails, this issue may be taken to court, where the court may order the removal of the encroachments or adjustments to the boundary line.

4. Unregistered easements

Easements give other parties the right to use another person’s land or property for a specific purpose, including access to utility lines or roads.

However, if unregistered easements occur, this creates disputes regarding the proper use of land. To resolve this issue, the easement must be registered with the land titles office so it’s legally recognised and enforceable.

Land Title Search Costs and Providers in South Australia

Land title searches in South Australia can be conducted directly through SAILIS. The search cost varies depending on the type of search and the information required.

If you also need to conduct property research, government searches may not offer the same level of convenience and additional services as private providers like Landchecker.

At Landchecker, we specialise in providing property data in one place and land title search services combined with a user-friendly experience that simplifies the search process.

So if you require more than just ownership details—such as zoning overlays, planning permits and heritage layers—private providers may offer better value with property reports. Landchecker offers Premium Property Reports that provide a comprehensive summary of your subject property, including planning permits and planning schemes.

Legal and Regulatory Considerations

The Real Property Act 1886 consolidates the Acts relating to the declaration of titles to land and the facilitation of its transfer, and specifically the Real Property Act 1861, the Real Property Act Amendment Act 1878 and the Rights-of-Way Act 1881.

This act introduced the Torrens system, where the land title is registered with a government authority for more secure and efficient property transactions. The RPA also divides land into two classes, as follows:

land hereafter alienated in fee from the Crown;

land heretofore alienated in fee from the Crown.

How Landchecker Simplifies the Process

You can bypass the need to find property assistance in person or spend hours scouring the internet for the simple and accurate information you need from a property Title Search online.

Since the relevant property information is now stored digitally, all you need is the address for the property, and from here, simply choose the document from the full list and range of property documents Landchecker has available. SA titles can be purchased in three ways:

By searching the property from the map search bar

Through document searches - title search

Through document searches - standard searches

Landchecker also offer competitively priced bulk orders for business needs. Manually searching for documents can be time-consuming and might lead to delays that could potentially impact your project.

Bulk Document searches can be conducted in Landchecker, streamlining the process of gathering property information. Request a call back from our team today for more details.

FAQ

What information is included in a South Australian title search?

A South Australian title search provides detailed information about a property’s type of ownership, land description, registered proprietor, easements, encumbrances, schedule of dealings, parcel details and notations.

How long does a title search take in SA?

Title searches with Landchecker are available for immediate download or within minutes after placing an order depending on the availability from the Land Services South Australia.

What’s the difference between a title search and a property certificate?

A title search shows the ownership details, encumbrances, caveats and notices while a property report provides the summary of property and planning information on any selected property.

How can I resolve encumbrances on a property title?

If there are encumbrances found on a title, consult a conveyancer or property lawyer to learn about the possible implications and how to proceed.

How much does a title search cost?

At Landchecker, we ensure our SA titles and documents are competitively priced for our customers’ benefit. Visit our Standard Searches page and select State - SA to see the price per document. If you purchase titles and documents in high volume, contact us to find out how we can provide you with enterprise discounts.